Chopper0080
2021 - Prove It
I just needed to get some thoughts down on what I feel I have seen so far this year.
1 - Kyler is done in AZ. I'm gonna lean in on this because there is obviously a path where he stays, I just don't feel it is likely. However you decide to rank Kyler in terms of being a QB, it all comes down to the fact that he isn't good enough t win in AZ. His career can go a lot of ways when he leaves, and we will see which it is. He wasn't a bust, but his career in AZ has been obviously a little underwhelming.
2 - Petzing has a decent playbook, but he doesn't seem to know how to use it. Brit has highlighted some aspects of the passing scheme that do work and are not being executed. The challenge is being a playcaller is more than just having a good playbook. Initial call sheet. Game flow. In game adjustments. How to get certain players involved. Manipulating defenses so you can maintain your identify. It's these other areas that Petzing seems to be deficient and why he is likely not back at the end of the year (at least as a OC).
3 - The offensive coaching staff is not good (as a whole). Too many details are being consistently missed for it to ALL be on the players. Route depth and leverage. Sight adjustments. Miscommunication. Uncertainty in pressure situations. Mental mistakes. The line has regressed. The WRs have not progressed. The QB has not progressed. Again, some of this is on the players, but you have to demand the details as a coach to see who wants to get better.
4 - Monti has kinda failed to get the offensive line where it needs to be. The "kinda" comes from the fact that these same players did better last year with a different coach. Adams has looked bad under both coaches so he may just be a future backup ala OT Josh Jones. Evan Brown was always mid at best and supposed to be a placeholder. Both Fro and Will are older players who may have peaked. Monti doesn't have any young players other than PJJ who have shown anything.
5 - On that note, many on this board have commented on the need for a vertical WR to create space for the offense. Monti has crapped the bed there. I don't know that Kyler is the guy to translate that player into yards and get the expected return on value, but it is still a need.
6 - Gannon is going to be the HC in 2026 and in 2027. There is my hot take.
7 - I have been pretty happy with the defense. I think the inexperience at the CB position has led to more soft coverage which has led to a lot of yards allowed. IMO the quality of the calls and aggressiveness has come in the key moments.
8 - So many injuries to the defensive front and CB positions. Nolen has been a huge disappointment but just because I was excited to watch him play. I can tell Rallis is having to play some players more than he wants and is trying to protect them to a degree.
9 - The EDGE room has developed nicely. I expected a little more production from Burch but he has played ok, Collins has applied a little more pressure than normal, and Browning continues to apply pressure but fails to finish. I thought Sweat would get more snaps (51.8% on the year) but he has been productive. It's not a perfect room by any stretch, but it is something to build on.
10 - A little out of sequence, but depending on the cost, I might kick the tires on Breece Hall if I could sign him to an extension. I don't think he solves the running game in 2025, but moving on from Conner feels like a given and Benson hasn't shown anything that makes you confident he can be RB1 vs 1B or 2. I like Hall's broken tackles per attempt stats (very close to Conner's) as well as his ability to break off big runs. This offense needs ways to create big plays out of the running game.
11 - Will Johnson can play in the league as a zone CB. Hopefully he can stay healthy so we can see his growth over the course of the season.
12 - So much of Monti's resume has been impacted by injuries. Stills has turned out to be one of his best picks and it is almost entirely because Stills has stayed healthy.
13 - If Monti gets fired in the next 2/3 seasons, he can look back to the 2024 season as a primary reason. It's wasn't all bad, but the production he got from FA signings Jonah Williams, SMB, Justin Jones, and Bilal Nichols along with his 3rd round faceplant ultimately was more of a step backwards than forwards.
14 - I could go on and on about the 2024 draft and the many ways Monti misjudged it. There was a real path to a franchise changing draft based on prior perception to the draft class, but Monti chose volume over quality. Such a whiff. It's a tough rant via message board, but maybe one day I will drive to see fellow Colorado resident @dreamcastrocks and subject him to it.
All I can think of right now. I will post other takeaways as they pop up in my brain.
1 - Kyler is done in AZ. I'm gonna lean in on this because there is obviously a path where he stays, I just don't feel it is likely. However you decide to rank Kyler in terms of being a QB, it all comes down to the fact that he isn't good enough t win in AZ. His career can go a lot of ways when he leaves, and we will see which it is. He wasn't a bust, but his career in AZ has been obviously a little underwhelming.
2 - Petzing has a decent playbook, but he doesn't seem to know how to use it. Brit has highlighted some aspects of the passing scheme that do work and are not being executed. The challenge is being a playcaller is more than just having a good playbook. Initial call sheet. Game flow. In game adjustments. How to get certain players involved. Manipulating defenses so you can maintain your identify. It's these other areas that Petzing seems to be deficient and why he is likely not back at the end of the year (at least as a OC).
3 - The offensive coaching staff is not good (as a whole). Too many details are being consistently missed for it to ALL be on the players. Route depth and leverage. Sight adjustments. Miscommunication. Uncertainty in pressure situations. Mental mistakes. The line has regressed. The WRs have not progressed. The QB has not progressed. Again, some of this is on the players, but you have to demand the details as a coach to see who wants to get better.
4 - Monti has kinda failed to get the offensive line where it needs to be. The "kinda" comes from the fact that these same players did better last year with a different coach. Adams has looked bad under both coaches so he may just be a future backup ala OT Josh Jones. Evan Brown was always mid at best and supposed to be a placeholder. Both Fro and Will are older players who may have peaked. Monti doesn't have any young players other than PJJ who have shown anything.
5 - On that note, many on this board have commented on the need for a vertical WR to create space for the offense. Monti has crapped the bed there. I don't know that Kyler is the guy to translate that player into yards and get the expected return on value, but it is still a need.
6 - Gannon is going to be the HC in 2026 and in 2027. There is my hot take.
7 - I have been pretty happy with the defense. I think the inexperience at the CB position has led to more soft coverage which has led to a lot of yards allowed. IMO the quality of the calls and aggressiveness has come in the key moments.
8 - So many injuries to the defensive front and CB positions. Nolen has been a huge disappointment but just because I was excited to watch him play. I can tell Rallis is having to play some players more than he wants and is trying to protect them to a degree.
9 - The EDGE room has developed nicely. I expected a little more production from Burch but he has played ok, Collins has applied a little more pressure than normal, and Browning continues to apply pressure but fails to finish. I thought Sweat would get more snaps (51.8% on the year) but he has been productive. It's not a perfect room by any stretch, but it is something to build on.
10 - A little out of sequence, but depending on the cost, I might kick the tires on Breece Hall if I could sign him to an extension. I don't think he solves the running game in 2025, but moving on from Conner feels like a given and Benson hasn't shown anything that makes you confident he can be RB1 vs 1B or 2. I like Hall's broken tackles per attempt stats (very close to Conner's) as well as his ability to break off big runs. This offense needs ways to create big plays out of the running game.
11 - Will Johnson can play in the league as a zone CB. Hopefully he can stay healthy so we can see his growth over the course of the season.
12 - So much of Monti's resume has been impacted by injuries. Stills has turned out to be one of his best picks and it is almost entirely because Stills has stayed healthy.
13 - If Monti gets fired in the next 2/3 seasons, he can look back to the 2024 season as a primary reason. It's wasn't all bad, but the production he got from FA signings Jonah Williams, SMB, Justin Jones, and Bilal Nichols along with his 3rd round faceplant ultimately was more of a step backwards than forwards.
14 - I could go on and on about the 2024 draft and the many ways Monti misjudged it. There was a real path to a franchise changing draft based on prior perception to the draft class, but Monti chose volume over quality. Such a whiff. It's a tough rant via message board, but maybe one day I will drive to see fellow Colorado resident @dreamcastrocks and subject him to it.
All I can think of right now. I will post other takeaways as they pop up in my brain.
